Keep track of all your files and get them from one place to another safely and easily.
- How do I save my work on a Mac?
- There are two ways to save your work: File, Save and File, Save As. The first time you save a new document these two menu options will work the same way and open up a Save As dialog box where you can enter a file name for your new file...
- How do I rename a file or folder?
- To rename a file or folder in OS X, first click on it once on the desktop or in a Finder window to select it. Once it is selected, click on it one more time, but this time click on the file or folder name, not on the icon. This...
- How do I view the properties of a file or folder?
- To access the properties of a file or folder, control-click on it (or right-click if you have a two-button mouse) and select Get Info. The General section of the Get Info dialog box will provide you with information such as the file's size, the location on the hard drive where...
- How do I create a copy of a file?
- There are many ways to copy a file in OS X. The simplest way is by control-clicking on a file (or right-clicking if you have a two-button mouse) to open up a context menu, then selecting Copy. You can then left click somewhere else in the window so that the...
- What is an alias, and how do I create one?
- An alias is a pointer to a file or folder on your hard drive. The alias is a small file that takes very little space because it only has information about the location of the original file. It is not an exact copy of the original file. When you delete the alias, the...
- How do I delete files or folders?
- You should periodically delete any files or folders you don't need to conserve space on your hard drive. Deleting a file or folder in OS X is easy. You can just drag the file or folder you want to delete to the Trash icon in the Dock. Another way to delete a file...
- What is the Dock, and how do I use it?
- The dock is the bar of icons that usually appears at the bottom of your screen. The dock offers a quick way to launch and manage applications. To launch an application, all you have to do is click on its icon in the Dock. To quit an application, you can...
- How do I change the program that opens a type of file on my computer?
- To change the program that opens a type of file, control-click (or right-click if you have a two-button mouse) on the file and select Get Info from the context menu. In the Open With section of the Get Info window, select the application you want to use from the pulldown...
- How do I use the Finder to manage my files and folders?
- The Finder is the file management application on the Mac. The Finder can be used to navigate your hard drive and display the contents of the folders and subfolders you use to organize your files on your hard drive. The Finder is always running in the background (its icon on the dock will always have...
- How do I assign labels to my folders?
- You can use color labels to quickly identify the most important folders on your computer. To assign a color label to a folder, you can control-click on it (or right-click if you have a two-button mouse) to bring up a context menu. You can then assign a color label to that folder by...
- How do I install programs on my computer?
- Before you can use a program, you must first install it on your computer. Most commercial programs come packaged in a CD or DVD and will automatically launch an installer program when you insert this media on your computer. If the installer does not automatically launch, open the CD or DVD by double-clicking...
- What is Spotlight, and how do I use it to search for files on my computer?
- If you have the Tiger version (10.4) of OS X, you will be able to take advantage of Spotlight, an advanced search technology. Spotlight can search not only your documents, but also your emails, calendars, and more for the search terms you enter in its search box. To begin a search with...
- How do I connect two Macs to share files using a Firewire cable?
- If you have an iSight camera, you can use the FireWire cable that comes with your iSight camera to connect your computer to another Mac to transfer files. To do this, you will need to boot one of the computers in Target mode by rebooting that system and holding down the T key...
- How do I share files between Macs over the network?
- To share files with another Mac over the network, you must first enable file sharing by selecting the Sharing icon in the System Preferences (it is found under Internet and Network). In the Services tab of the Sharing window, make sure the box next to Personal File Sharing is checked. If Personal File...
- How do I share files between Macs and PCs over a network?
- It is easy to share files between Windows computers and Mac computers using TCP/IP, an industry standard networking protocol. Before you can connect to a Windows computer from your Mac you must know some information about how your Windows computer is set up. First, you must find out what IP address your...
- Can I open files created with a PC on my Mac?
- Yes, in most cases you should be able to open a file created on a PC on your Mac. If you used a cross-platform program (such as Microsoft Office) it will likely save files in a format that can be read by both your PC and your Mac. You can transfer the...
- How do I find out how much disk space I have free to store files on my computer?
- An easy way to find out how much free space you have left on your hard drive is by double-clicking on its icon on the desktop to open a Finder window. Once the Finder window opens, take a look at the status bar. It will tell you how much free space you have...
- How do I compress files to make them smaller?
- One way to store more data when you are low on hard drive space is by using compression to make the files and folders you already have on your computer take up less space. On OS X, the compressed version of a folder is known as an archive. To create an archive,...
- What is Exposé?
- Exposé is a window management application included in OS X. Exposé allows you to view all open windows using a keystroke, giving you a quick way to find the one you want to open. To activate Exposé, press the F9 key on your keyboard. All of the windows you have open will be...
- How do I switch between open applications using my keyboard?
- A quick way to switch between open applications is by using the Command + Tab keyboard shortcut. This will display a transparent bar of icons in the middle of your screen. You can keep pressing the shortcut combination to cycle through the open applications on your computer while the bar...
